Hillfoot Hey Golf Club
Designed by Brian Jameson
Designer: Having previously designed three fictional woodland courses, this is Brian Jameson’s first tropical design, and is certainly his best work to date.
Course: Being very reminiscent of courses you’d find in the Hawaii region, right off the first tee, the visuals on this course were really nice. Hillfoot Hey contains many different bunker designs, and with numerous bunkers being found throughout the course, it was great to see more than one type of sand being used, while even though water isn’t found in abundance, it still comes into play in many areas. Each hole offers up a different challenge, while on occasion, there are instances where the driver will be greatly tested off the tee, with a superb use of angling and bunker positioning. With vast elevation changes, and tricky undulations in the fairways, this course is both challenging and aesthetically striking.
Favourite Hole: My favourite hole on the course was the Par 4 on Hole 17. The hole itself is quite challenging, with water to the right of the fairway and two different types of bunkers near the green, but the reason why I liked the hole so much was because of the scenic outlook looking back down the fairway into the distance.
Playability: At just over 7400 yards off the back tee, the course is a relatively good challenge to golfers of all skill levels, while with a great variation in distance from each of the tees, players have the option to alter their playing experience greatly if they so choose. The Par 3’s are protected perfectly with hazards, while even though the Par 5’s are possible to reach in two shots, you’ll need a favourable wind and great line into the hole to set-up a reasonable eagle opportunity. With perhaps too many lengthy Par 4’s, breaking par is unlikely if you play the course in high winds, but with plenty of bunkers scattered around the course, a round of golf at Hillfoot Hey Golf Club is likely to be very amusing.
AI Performance: The AI Golfer ‘Simon’ shot a -1 (71), with 64% Fairways and 50% Greens in Regulation, with a total of 26 putts.
Difficulty Index: 1.04
Technically: From first impressions, the course contained some quality APCD work, with the textures used being very realistic, and the panorama fitting in perfectly with the planting scheme. Even though the seam blending was reasonably well done, on closer view, there were many areas where it could have been much better, while the water edging and walls could have done with some enhancement. From a player’s perspective, people are unlikely to notice any errors that will distract themselves from enjoying a round of golf, but from looking a the top view, it is quite easy to notice all the jagged lines throughout the course, which shows that the APCD work doesn’t need a major overhaul, but just a refining of technique.
Other: The course contains a cameo, handicaps, hole previews and a splash screen, but even though all were of a satisfactory nature, all of them could have been better graphically. Bunkers were visibly a major feature of the course, however, it felt as if though there was an over reliance of them in both the look and play of the course, while in comparing the amount of larger waste bunkers on the back nine to that of the front, there didn’t seem to be an evenly balanced amount. The Par 5 on Hole 16 was a great hole, but the carry needed to clear the large bunker in the middle of the hole was too long, especially with a headwind, so in the future, remember to factor in wind levels with large carries.
This course provided evidence that the designer is getting much better at using the APCD, and is now only a few short steps from becoming really good. To get to that next level, I’d recommend reading as many advanced tutorials as possible and getting any future courses beta tested from a larger group of experienced people within the community. Hillfoot Hey Golf Club was quite good, but a few minor things held it back, however, by becoming better at using high quality APCD techniques, any future designs should be very close to the top tier of courses released.
Download Value: At just under 35mb, the course is a relatively simple download for most users, and even though the zip file only includes a read-me file, the course is quite a surprise packet. The designer has certainly improved in recent times, and even if you didn’t like his previous courses, I’d certainly recommend giving this one a look, as with a great standard of APCD work and quite a challenge in regard to playability, it is a course I will be burning to CD.
Information:
Course Statistics:
2003 - Fictional Tropical - Par 72 - 3 Tees
7432yds (Back) - 5777yds (Forward)
Par 3’s: 4 - Par 4’s: 10 - Par 5’s: 4
File Statistics:
Zip: 34.6mb - Crz: 32.2mb - Sha: 17.4mb
Round Statistics:
AI Skill: 79 - Settings: Champ/Classic/Back Tees/Breezy/Moderate/Medium/Moderate
Other:
Designer: Brian Jameson - brianrjameson@aol.com
Design: 4
Reviewer: Simon Kent - Simon@linkscorner.com
Review: 65
(This review is based on the playability for users of Links Golf. It is only my opinion, but comes from a thorough analysis of the course. Disregarding my opinion, I know the difficulty involved in designing a course and I congratulate the designer on a job well done. My comments are objective, are based on a number of criteria, and any comments are from a players stand point and not from a designers).
Screenshots |
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